The new North-west. [volume] (Deer Lodge, Mont.) 1869-1897, 1887-07-15
0III0'S NATURAL GAS.
GOVERNOR FOSTER ESTIMATES THE
FIELD AT 100000 ACRES.

he Ohio Oil Region and Its Prospects.
Cheap Gas to be Made Out of OiI-Gos-
sip About Great Manufacturing Re-
giom of the Future.
Especial Correspondence
FosToRIA, o., July 4.
This town is the home of Ex-Gov Foster,
ind it gets its name from the fact that Fos-
as father was one of its leading founders
1t is fifteen miles from Findlay, and it now
'ontaims about 5000 people, Charley Foster
still, as he has been for years, the moving
:piiit of this section of the country. He is a
lumber of times a millionaire in the first
place, a politician i'll the second, and thor
oughly enterprising business man in the
third. There are few big business enterprises
i'll Ohio that lie has not hand in, and he is
bold operator and speculator. He has hero
interests in the different manufacturing insti-
tutions of Fostoria, owns bank and a store
from which he got his nickname during his
gubernatorial campaign of "Calico Charley"
and has lands, houses and gold galore. He is
one of the leading members of the North
western Gas company, which is in fact
branch of the Standard Oil company, and
which has already acquired the right to the
greatest part of the immense natural gas re-
sources of this part of the country. Governor
Foster says that this company practically
owns the Ohio natural gas fields, and he tells
me that these fields, as far as can now be esti-
mated, contain fully 100, 600 acres of land in
this part of the state. They are about ten
miles wide and sixteen miles long.
ut is best for the country and for every
body" said he, "that this gas should be con-
trolled in this way, and I predict that within
five years Findlay itself will be controlled by
them. We already own great percentage
of the gas of Findlay, and it is only ques-
ton of time"
"What do you think Of the prospects of
Findlay!" asked.
~ think it has good thing in its natural
gas, but no better than a number of other
towns in this territory. 1t has been extern
sively advertised and the people Of the coun-
try have come to think that there is no gas
anywhere hereabouts save in Findlay. The
truth of the matter is that Findlay is on the
southwestern edge of the gas territory and
we are on about the edge of the middle of it.
the main street seems to be the dividing line.
We have gas here at Fostoria, within four
miles of the town, and we have piped it in SO
that for all practical purposes we are as well
off as Findlay in this regard. We are laying
u pipe around the town, from which we can
supply such manufacturing establishments as
come here. The trouble with Findlay is its
lack of railroad facilities, and it is our excel
-, ti,at
have five different roads and have direct
access to all parts of the country. Fostoria
is one of the best railroad centers in Ohio.
and Findlay has practically only one road,
the Lake Erie and Western, though she has
branch lines running from the town to the
Cincinnati, Sandusky and Cleveland road
and the Indiana, Bloomington and Western
road.
"I have no doubt the town will grow, as will
all of the towns supplied with natural gas,
but think it has been overboomed, and that
~. react VI has come. I understand th~'i
ave la... ,..J ~, 4 n.d s-~s
lie whole township is taken into the new
ity. The people have grown wild i'll the real
tate craze of the spring, and in fact we
Ave had considerable Of a craze here"
"What do you think Of natural gas as a
uen
at is one of the incest things the Almighty
yer made. 1t is used by us largely for heat
ng. and it costs us about one-thiri the price
f coal. 1t is too good thing to be given
way, and it is such luxury that would
Sc it il it cost me five times the cost Of coal
is more of luxury in the summer, too,
han in the winter. We can have fire so
,sily and we have it whenever we want it,
s,ok at this grate"
Governor Foster here pointed to crate at
he side Of the room. 1t was very pretty
flair, with back which did not show the
liscoloration of smoke, and in the bars Of
which was laid little pile of terra Gotta logs
..ast in imitation of wood. The governor
hen stopped over, turned screw in the floor
md threw a lighted match upon the logs.
rhey burst forth into a blaze, and in an in
slant there was as pretty wood fire for all
purposes as any one could wish.
"The gas gives forth powerful hcat," the
governor continued, "and it can be graduated
ut will. Ii is the best fuel for glass making,
and its cheapness and its excellence in this re-
gard will eventually force all the glass fac
tories to use it, 1t can be used for nearly
everything that coal can, and it will make an
immense saving in the manufacture OF many
things. Large Touring mills are being built
here at cost of about $150,O00. There are
others that are larger than these mills, but
there are none equal to them in equipment.
It will give you some idea OF their size to
know that fifty men will be employed in the
COOPER shop connected with them TO make
barrels for their product. These mills Will be
run with natural gas as fuel, and 1t IS ex-
nected that there will be saving OF per
cent. q year on the capital stock which the
cost of this gas will give over coal. 1t Is ex-
pected that better -four can be made from the
eyenness Of the heat furnished. and there VIII
he such q state of cleanliness about the engine
rooms that the engineer can, II ne wishes,
wear O full suit of clean white duck all the
while and spend most of his time IN reading
the newspapers. Instead OF having four
grimy coal heavers continually throwing coal
into the furnace he will turn valve at the
start and the heat viii go on day and night
and night and day until he turns 1t on. be
can increase 1t or lower 1t at viii, and ne can
have through it the very perfection OF motion
for his engine"
7 chatted with Governor Foster about the
oil regions of the state, and he told me tna'
he tb,m,i,t tile greatest coal oil regions OF the
world were located in this part of Ohio
Wood comfy is the latest oil territory deve-
o,,e,l and the oil flows here at such q rate
tl,,,t tile Standard Oil company has had TO
reduce the price to stop the production. But
fills Ohio oil is not so good for Illuminating
n,,rposes as that OF Pennsylvania. In the words
Of Governor Foster it cost the company
$50. 600 to make the tanks to store the OH OF .
forty acre tract of territory and it was found
impossible to use the production OF tho new
fields. Ohio oil is now worth only twenty
cents barrel. and the oil fields join close ur
to the gas fields. Both oil and gas are founo IN
the Trenton rock, and the gas is in that part
~ the rock which rises higher than the OIL
s., far no good gas wells have been struck IN
,,laces where tie rock was lower than 5oO iee1
is.lnw the level of the sea, and the gas OF tnis
nart m the state is found from ,0oO 70 oo,
feet below the earth's surface. A nlni'e.l
s.nnlv ofa slightly different kind OF gas 7
fo,,nd in the shale rock, which lies q e''fs''' f
erabIe distance above the Tianton, but this
gas is il small quantities, and number OF
Ohio towns which have tried to use It have
found that it had no lasting qualities Berea,
near Cleveland, for instance, paid S3OOoO 70
ave it piped from the country into its town
md then found that it would not supply
egtllar amount Of gas, and the pipes were
abandoned. &1* 60.
I'm Findlay the oil fields and the gas nelds
~, ,,,o side Of the town you SINK a